Chevelle’s Got a New Social Media Strategy (And I Don’t Love It)

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I noticed something new about Chevelle on Facebook.

I kept getting new notifications from Sam and Pete from comments I wrote months ago. Now, the guys are pretty responsive to their fans on Facebook, and it’s one reason why they’re so fun to follow.

But these seemed a little…late?

Here’s one:

This comment was a response to the question “On our way to Atlantic City for the Orange Loop Rock Festival. Who is coming out to rock New Jersey with us tomorrow night?”

This concert happened in June 2022. It’s April 2023 at the time I’m writing this. So that concert was a while ago.

(You can read about that concert experience here. It’s the one that made me start this website.)

Here’s one from Pete:

This reaction was on a comment from a post that happened on September 22, 2022. Also, the guys already reacted to these a long time ago.

Then I thought, “Wait! Sam is reacting?!” Pete has a personal Facebook page, but Sam never did. And then I realized Pete also had a new Facebook page.

This is Pete’s 3rd Facebook page. And yes, I keep track of these things. Not just because I’m an obsessive fan, but because I’m trying to figure out their marketing strategy. More on that later…

In case you’re wondering, here are Pete’s 3 pages and Sam’s 1:

I haven’t checked Instagram yet because ain’t nobody got time for that.

Aint Nobody Got Time For That GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY

One social media site at a time. 😅

Now, here’s something interesting that happened…

Sam made this post:

I made this response:

Do you see the part that I circled?

Yea. Sam slid into my DMs. 😆

And this is when I figured out that they must have hired someone or some company to work on their social media. Now I’m going to tell you how I feel about it.

The Positives of Chevelle’s New Social Media Strategy

There are some things I like about the new strategy.

  1. There’s more consistent posting from the guys. I like when my feed is filled up with Sam and Pete photos.
  2. The posts are positive and uplifting.
  3. The person who wrote privately to me was a very nice, positive person. Please someone give them a raise!

The Negatives of Chevelle’s New Social Media Strategy

Unfortunately, I think the downsides are more downsidey than the upsides. (I’m sorry, Chevelle! I just call it like I see it. Especially as someone with a marketing background and as a fan.)

1. While the posts are positive, they’re a little too frou-frou.

Here’s an example:

I appreciate the sentiment, but this is a rock band. The posts can be grateful, but I also think they should be a little edgier. I’ve seen the boys post things in their own words, and this doesn’t sound like them.

I don’t know much about social media ghostwriting, but what I do know is that you need to write in the person’s voice.

2. I don’t like being tricked.

I know every band out there has a social media person, but when someone writes to me and they claim to be Sam Loeffler from Chevelle, they better be Sam Loeffler from Chevelle!

I’m a middle-aged lady, and I would say most of their fans are around my age. We’re too old for tricks. It’s not necessary.

Again, I appreciate the sentiment and trying to connect and create a positive vibe with their fans, but I don’t know if this is a great way to do it.

3. It’s not personal.

As I mentioned above, what I love about Chevelle is that they did connect with their fans personally. (You could tell it was them. It was a completely different vibe.)

I’d rather they connect personally and have it be an inconsistent thing than to have a fake Sam and Pete consistently connecting.

I hope those jumbled-up words made sense.

I like when I see that Chevelle came to my post to give me a 👊 or a 🤘 or a ❤️. It makes for a stronger connection with a fan. Here’s an example of when I tagged them in a running post. They responded with a like.

This is simple, but effective marketing. You make true fans by making true connections.

“These diehard fans will drive 200 miles to see you sing…”

https://kk.org/thetechnium/1000-true-fans/

Or, they will fly thousands of miles and spend thousands of dollars to see you at Sick New World in Las Vegas. True connections = true fans.

Conclusion

My freaking Chevelle ramblings are finally coming to an end.

I’m assuming the boys are trying to ramp up social media because they have a new album coming out. I appreciate that.

As I said above, I’m not just some raving lunatic fan. I have an interest in marketing and social media, and I’m curious about their strategy.

I’ll continue to follow it. I’ll make comments and posts about the band and see what happens. I love this kind of stuff.

In case the boys ever read this, (Whatever. A girl can dream, right?) I would suggest going back to your old social media ways. We enjoy connecting directly with you.

We’ll help you market your new album. Word of mouth is the way to go. If you decide against that, then have your social media company ghostwrite in your voices. And for the love of God, please don’t try to trick people!

And if you ever want to hire me to be a part of your team, I’m available. 😎 (Again, I can dream. Right? Right???)

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